10-6-22 After Hours with Amy Lawrence PODCAST: Hour 4

The listening you love is on the free Odyssey app. Your trusted local radio stations, coverage of your favorite teams, live news from your hometown, and millions of podcasts on demand. Best of all, you can completely customize your listening experience. Follow topics you care about, like leagues and teams, pause or rewind your local sports and news, and add shows to your queue to catch up later.

There's a lot to listen to, so get started and download the free Odyssey app today. Are you ready? Are you ready to play some postseason baseball? Because it is coming.

Woo! Excited about Friday. It's exhausting, of course, these first few weeks of postseason baseball, because it's every day, it's multiple games, it's multiple series.

And a lot of times it requires an investment that we don't necessarily want to give it for plus hours. However, it's also really exciting and dramatic, and we're going to have a stage full of superstars. Of course, we will not see either Shohei Ohtani or Mike Trout, who smacked his 40th home run of the season last night in the Angels finale. Shohei Ohtani finishes the year with 219 strikeouts in 166 innings. 15 wins, a 2.33 ERA while he was batting 273 and belting 34 home runs and driving in 95. First player to qualify as a batter and a pitcher for any of the rankings and postseason awards since the rules were adopted back in 1950. He's literally doing something that's never been done. Hitting and pitching in the same games, coming out of games as a pitcher only to stay in as a DH, not a DH, but well DH for sure.

Other times, we've even seen him in the field. I mean, it's insane what is happening with this guy, and we're not going to see him in the postseason. Same as Mike Trout. Mike Trout is one of the game's generational talents. And so these two guys should be on the grandest stage in sports. With Ohtani pitching in the All-Star game, we had a taste of it. Where all of the world is focused on this one guy with the ball in his hands facing some of the best, but that's an exhibition. Mike Trout has not been in the postseason since 2013. One series, one playoff series in his entire career. Get your act together, Angels.

Of course, we all know who these guys are. Whether Ohtani is on the mound, whether he's hitting, he's an everyday player doing what he's done. Running the bases, fielding balls that come toward him, it's crazy. The guy is, he's a unicorn.

He's a unique unicorn. And we may never see this again in our lifetime, or ever really, but for the second straight year, we're not getting him in the playoffs. Sucks. But there are a lot of good stories.

I don't know why I had to start with something negative. It's been burning a hole in my baseball heart. With the regular season behind us, there were a lot of really cool moments and memories. History made, records set, droughts ended. So we're asking you, as we approach the playoffs, a quadruple header on Friday, and we'll do some preview coming up on the final show of the workweek, along with the kickoff to week five, what? We're asking you, what were the best and brightest of baseball in 2022?

Moments, memories, accomplishments, achievements. And we've gotten some great responses so far. On our show Twitter, after our CBS, I did retweet ALawRadio and just shared the video of the pit bull who refuses to get out of the pool. I'm telling you, it is guaranteed to make you laugh. And if you're anything like me, you will last so hard you cry while you're watching it.

The dog's relentless. I suppose there's a few athletes out there that we could. Von Miller, he's relentless.

There's no way you'd get Von Miller out of the pool. Anyway, I cried so hard. I cry because I was laughing so hard when I was watching it. There are at least one muted swear word, maybe two, that I heard, so I just wanted to put that caveat on it. But since we all are better for watching dog videos and animal videos online, I say that all the time. One, and there's very few, one of the redeeming qualities of social media is animal videos. And so we're sharing it this morning because you need it in your life. Just trust me. So check it out on our show, Twitter, after our CBS, or on my Twitter, ALawRadio, as well as sharing with us the best and brightest of baseball in 2022. Both are on our Facebook page as well, After Hours with Amy Lawrence. We're live from the Rocket Mortgage Studios.

Do you need to know what it takes for a home to fit your budget and your family? Rocket can. 855-212-4227, we've taken a fair number of calls on this edition of the show.

855-212-4CBS. We all know the Los Angeles Dodgers had the best record in Major League Baseball. 111 wins. That's more than any National League team in a century. They won the 2020 World Series. They obviously have grander plans than just regular season wins this year. Every season we hear calls for Dave Roberts to be replaced if they don't win the World Series, which I find comical.

It's like calling for Mike Tomlin to get fired with his record of consistency. But this, obviously in October, is when reputations are earned or lost. This is what they really play for. To go through and endure what we've done speaks a lot to a lot of people. So we appreciate it. I think that having a day off to kind of relish in the regular season, I think that's a good thing, healthy thing. But we still know that the most important part of the season is yet to come.

Think back in March of thinking about your life and different options and things like that. This is what we want to do. That doesn't mean it's just going to come easy, obviously. It's going to be a grind and it's going to be a challenge. But that's why I'm here.

That's what I want. And I'm looking forward to the next month. Along with some of the team accomplishments, some resurgence seasons for athletes like Clayton Kershaw. Remember, there was a question about whether or not he would return with the Dodgers. He wasn't quite ready to retire, to hang it up. And the Dodgers chose to bring him back. And he finished up at 12-3. 12-3. Bigger things, man.

Bigger things. And it also started the All-Star Game in Los Angeles for the first time in his career, which was amazing. Last night, wrapped up with a nine-strikeout performance that shows postseason Kershaw is ready to go.

And I know he had a couple of stints on the I-L, but this is still one of the greatest pitchers of our time. And I would say a little bit unexpected. I didn't feel great until March, basically. So, there's a lot of unknowns, I think, going into this year, let alone performance-wise.

So, yeah, overall I think, I'm not going to say a surprise, but definitely thankful that I felt all right this year and the stuff kind of held up. The Dodgers get to sit and wait as the top team in the National League. And, of course, the Astros can do the same as the top team in the American League. One of the storylines that I find so fascinating, and we can't call it an exchange, because Freddie Freeman chose to leave the Braves and go to the Dodgers.

And, man, what a huge piece of their success he was. But the Braves were able to bring in Matt Olson, left Oakland after a good chunk of his career, where he had, I don't want to say operated in anonymity, but postseason baseball is where, as I say, reputations are forged and earned and sometimes lost. And we didn't get to see his talent on the postseason stage either. But now, we will with the Braves.

So just consider these numbers. Freddie Freeman finished with a.325 batting average, hundredths of percentage points out of first place in the NL batting title. He finished just behind Jeff McNeil, who won it for the Mets..325 batting average, second best in Major League Baseball, 21 home runs, 100 RBI. He chose the Dodgers, and we've seen that smile on his face all year. It was just a special year, a special group of guys, front office, coaching staff, medical staff, guys in the clubhouse.

Made me feel welcome from day one, and it's a great place to play. Freddie Freeman on Sportsnet LA. How many weeks was it before the fans stopped chanting his name every single time he came up to the plate? So.325,.21, and.100. Those are his numbers. Matt Olson hit 34 home runs for the NL East champion Braves, the defending champion Braves who are going to be hard to unseat. 103 RBI. Now, it's hard to compare the impacts.

You're really looking at apples and oranges. You can't just look at stats. But Olson obviously very popular with the Braves already, fit right into their clubhouse, and a dynamic season at the plate as well. I think the most important thing is division, division champs, and winning over 100 games is huge.

I think we're all happy in here. So Matt Olson following the Braves using most of the regular season to win their fifth straight NL East title. But you know, they finished with the exact same record as the Mets. Yes, the Mets lost a ten and a half game lead in that division from June 1st through October 1st.

They had opportunities to win it. They did not perform the way they wanted to in Atlanta last weekend, and the Braves used that as a tune up for what's to come against two of the best pitchers in a game for get on the Mets rotation. But the Mets had 101 wins and are a wild card team. The Mets and Braves are two of the best teams in Major League Baseball. They just happen to be in the same division. It's after hours with Amy Lawrence on CBS Sports Radio, so kind of interesting to think about the juxtaposition of Freddie Freeman and Matt Olson.

Of course, we have the Seattle Mariners who are back in the postseason for the first time in 21 years, and they already spent a lot of money to lock up their dynamic rookie. Alvin Davis for the most by a Mariner rookie. Swing and a drive deep to left field.

This is up into the light towers. Good bye baseball upper deck. He did it. He moves by Alvin Davis with a towering home run, his 28th home run of the season. On the second pitch he sees from Tyler Alexander and Julio Rodriguez just put one into orbit. He put it into the front row of the upper deck in left field. And now Julio Rodriguez has hit more home runs than any rookie in a single season in the history of the Seattle Mariners. What a year for this kid.

Holy smokes. Julio did it. Rick Riz on Mariners radio. He took care of it in the first inning, similar to Aaron Judge, actually, who set the new American League single season home run record in the first inning of his last game of the regular season. And Rick's going to bring all that passion and energy to the Mariners series that begins in Toronto coming up on Friday.

I don't know if it's playing with house money or it's a cherry on top. Those actual games. I'm not sure of Mariners fans believe that their team will contend for the World Series, but I know the drought is over and it's been a wild ride for Scott Service and crew. The fan base here, what they've gone through over the last 21 years and what they're about to enjoy this next weekend and beyond. They have paid a price and I'm very happy that our team's been able to deliver and we get to do something that hadn't been done here in the Pacific Northwest in a long time. And that's what's Mariners playoff baseball. There's big moments yet ahead for this team.

I certainly believe that. And they're going to happen here at T-Mobile Park. But we got some work to do first. The Mariners back for the first time since 2001. The Phillies, the last team to punch their ticket, make it for the first time in a decade. These are some of the best and brightest in baseball in 2022. But we're looking for your responses.

So find me on Twitter, A Law Radio. Hint, hint. In my opinion, the best and brightest in baseball in 2022 is pictured in the GIF that producer James chose to put on our social. He did that because he knows me well. So you can check that out.

And while you're there, I'm telling you, Bryant the Pitbull, who won't get out of the pool, has got to be one of the funniest things that you will see all week. So the videos are both the videos up. Our show question is up on our show Twitter or on my Twitter, A Law Radio. It's great to have you with us. I think I just made up a word again. This is what I do.

This is what I do. It's glate. I was going to say I'm glad that I was going to say it's great. It came out glate. I don't think that's a word you're going to find in Wordle. It's not going to help you.

They probably won't even accept it. When I get very excited, I talk faster. I don't breathe as much. I don't take space in between my words.

And then my brain and my mouth get out of sync. So I provide you comic relief, just like Bryant the Pitbull, who won't get out of the pool. All right.

Who are the best and brightest in baseball in 2022? Our phone number 855-212-4227. And then on our social media, we're glad to have you with us. It's yeah, it's cool to take this breather and think about October and all of the endless possibilities. And so I hope you're as excited. I hope you're glate.

I really do hope you're glate on this Thursday morning. It's After Hours CBS Sports Radio. You are listening to the After Hours podcast. With the widespread stance, arms out over the plate. Bickford from the stretch. The 1-1 pitch. A swing and there it goes! Left field! To catch up later. There's a lot to listen to.

So get started and download the free Odyssey app today. That's home run number 700! It's a three run homer and he hit 699 and 700 at Dodger Stadium on September 23rd, 2022. Here's the 1-1. Swung on. There it goes! Deep left it is high! It is far!

It is gone! Number 62 to set the new American League record! Aaron Judge hits his 62nd. All the Yankees out of the dugout to greet him.

Just think of it. Three Yankee right fielders. The Babe hitting 60 and 27. The Jolly Roger hitting 61 and 61. And now Aaron Judge hits his 62nd home run. The most home runs any American Leaguer has hit in a single season.

And the American League has been alive for 120 years. This is Judgment Day. Case closed.

This is After Hours with Amy Lawrence. Man, two iconic countdowns in 2022. Although it's weird to call it countdown, right? We were counting down to particular numbers, but we were also racking them up at the same time. I started talking about it in March.

You can go back and get the podcast or if you don't believe me, producer Jay will back me up. I wanted so badly for Albert Pujols to be able to hit 700 and to leave and retire from this game that he has impacted in so many ways as a member of that baseball immortality. Only the seventh player ever to hit 700 home runs and he finishes with 703. And he was a major piece of the Cardinals run to the NL Central this season. I actually was looking at some of his splits.

Get this. In his last 15 games, he did not play on Wednesday. In his last 15 games, he hit 310 with five home runs, 15 RBI and six walks. His on base percentage was nearly 400. And he had 42 at bat going back to his last month. His average was down a bit from that 250, though. With nine home runs, 28 RBI and eight walks. Scored 14 runs over the last month. You've got to be on the field.

You've got to be out there. To have that kind of impact. And I don't believe at the start of the season that he was ever going to be an everyday player. It's supposed to be more about giving Albert the proper sendoff. It was supposed to be about him sharing his wisdom and experience with a clubhouse. Obviously, the fact that Yadier Molina was finishing his career. Adam Wainwright was playing again.

Those three are the triumvirate in St. Louis. This was unexpected. But I was talking about it back in March. That this could be the story of the summer and I'll be darned.

Every now and then Blind Squirrel finds it up. Albert Pujols made me look smart. John Rooney with the call on Cardinals radio. And then John Sterling with that 62nd home run for one Aaron Judge. And with all of the class with which he carries himself.

With the deflection, the humility, the grace. He wants to talk about his teammates. He wants to talk about the postseason now that the Yankees have finally gotten to that point. It's an exciting time of the year and this is what we're looking forward to. Like I said, in Toronto we were able to get that first step out of the way.

Clenching the vision and now it's time for guys to rest up. Hopefully we can get some guys back from the IL. This is the fun part of the year. It's going to be neat to see. Although, if you had told me when the Yankees finally got to 70 wins. That they would only finish. I don't want to scoff at 99 because that's an accomplishment. But that they would not even finish in triple digits.

I would never have believed you. They had a terrible July and August. Post All-Star break into August. A terrible six weeks. Now they never did lose that division lead in the East.

It's right in front of us. And they did rally to play some really good baseball down the stretch. They finished with the highest run differential in the American League. Second only in baseball to the Dodgers. Even higher than the Astros. Higher than the Braves.

But, I never would have believed you if you said they were going to finish at 99 wins. Those home runs that Aaron Judge might hit in the postseason do not count towards his total. So we can stop with the Aaron Judge watch.

Or we can follow his advice. He says, can you just all sit down now when I come up to the plate? Still cool. Two guys who represent their sports so well. Different stages in their career.

But Aaron Judge and Albert Pujols being held up this year. Their standards and role models to be sure. Ambassadors for their game. It's After Hours with Amy Lawrence on Facebook. On Twitter, ALawRadio, the wildcard weekend. It's three days in a row. Friday, Saturday, Sunday. It starts on, well it starts tomorrow.

I guess now all of the United States is in to Thursday. So I can say tomorrow. And we will have more moments and memories. But for now we're asking you the best and brightest in 2022.

The moments and the memories. Let's talk to Rich who's in Boston. Welcome to After Hours. Hello. Good morning.

In your honor, I'm going to say I'm from Boo, England. We all have that thing with words, Amy. I think it's a good thing to have. It's cool.

It makes you deeper to everybody's heart. Oh, thank you. But anyway, I wanted to tell you that I'm sure you know about Dennis Eckersley. You know, you've even heard of him and what he does. Oh, heard of him?

Of course. I've watched him. I've listened to him. Yeah, he's obviously a Hall of Famer and everything else he's meant to baseball. Well, last night was his last night as an announcer.

He's 68, so he's retiring. I'll tell you, that guy looks better than I do. I thought I looked good. I'm 70. I used to look in the mirror and say, boy, I look good.

Not anymore. Anyway, in the middle of the show, the other announcer says, hey, we've got something for you, Dennis. I hope you're going to like this. And on the electronic billboard, they start playing this music.

I wish I could remember the song. It was beautiful. But anyway, they had they started playing all the best things in his baseball life and in his regular life.

And they had his picture up there. Dennis started crying. I've never seen him cry before. And both dugouts came out and they stood there for the whole thing was over two and a half minutes.

Wow. And it was just so emotional. So I'm glad. I'm glad he got I'm glad he got a proper tribute. As you point out, his final game as a Red Sox broadcaster. But he spent so much to baseball going back even to the was it late 90s. Well, late 90s. What he finished.

Right. But before that, he was hit at other stints with the Red Sox and also have to mention losing Jerry Remy Red Sox Nation. Such a loss after his multiple fights against cancer, his humor, his bravery.

The fact that he continued to work whenever he could. He was so beloved by Red Sox Nation and really around baseball circles. And so I know Dennis Eckersley is still very much alive. But both of those guys obviously no longer part of Red Sox broadcasting and kind of losing them. Red Sox Nation is losing them in different ways. That was one of the pitches. They had him in center field hugging Jerry Remy. Yeah.

I mean, the news around here, they're all saying we dare you to watch this and not shed a tear. Yeah, no doubt. I mean, the both of them have meant so much to, yes, baseball, specifically the Red Sox. I mean, Eckersley pitch for the Oakland A's for the longest time, too.

But I appreciate you pointing that out, Rich. Having to say goodbye and say farewell. That's always a tough part of sports. And those two, they left a mark, an indelible mark on that franchise. Yeah, it started out. You're a Hall of Fame Hall of Famer. That's great. Yeah. What a great guy.

All right. Well, I just want to share that with you. And you're doing a great job, you guys.

I love watching that you in the morning. Thank you, Rich. Good to have you with us.

Have a great Thursday. Let's quick work in Jose, who's other corner of the country in San Jose. San Jose. Sorry. San Diego. Welcome to After Hours.

Hey, how's it going? Good. One of the brightest players of this MLB season is Manny Machado. It's hard to believe that the Padres would be in the playoffs without him. And I just think that he's a guy that always gets overlooked because he's thought of as a dirty player.

But the numbers were great for him. And the Padres, I think, are a dark horse in the playoffs this season. Yeah. I don't know how dark they are considering that lineup is really dangerous. I don't love their pitching. They do have some solid pitchers. I don't think the pitching rotation is as good as some of the others coming out of the National League or just in general in the postseason. But you're right about Machado.

And I think he's a really great influence for Juan Soto. The two guys, you know, they're going to be core of that lineup. Obviously, Josh Bell was brought in as well. They made a bunch of moves there in San Diego. And lo and behold, if they didn't, they started slowly right after that trade deadline, but ended up playing well enough. And just in that division, I think they get overlooked because the Dodgers were 20 games up in the NL West. But you kind of forget what the Padres did because of the fact that they were so far behind the Dodgers. But they definitely needed some time to find their footing with the different lineup and the moving pieces. But yeah, Machado's numbers this year. I mean, he finished just shy of 300 with his batting average. He had 32 home runs, over 100 RBI, critical to their success. Yeah, absolutely.

It would be amazing to bring it if you brought a championship to San Diego. So we'll see. All right, sir. Good to talk to you. Thanks for reminding us about Manny.

Thank you. Enjoy the playoffs. Yeah, that's something that I think about the postseason with the Dodgers. They haven't been pushed in so long. Now, did they care about topping the franchise record in wins? Did they care about getting to 111 maybe?

You didn't see me let down with these guys. Freddy Freeman was chasing a batting title until last night in the National League. And we talked about Clayton Kershaw, some of the other pitchers. And yeah, it gave them some time to rest where they needed to.

It gave them some time to allow guys to sit out and recover if that was necessary. But I think sometimes there's an edge to teams who have been fighting and scratching and clawing for their playoff lives. Like the Padres to the very end in the National League wildcard race. Like the Phillies who also made it there, but they were the last team to punch their ticket. Like the Braves even. Now, the Braves are a self-starter, let's be honest. But they had to fight until the very last series of the season to win the NL East. And it was important to them because they wanted to avoid this initial wildcard weekend.

So they were in a fight and a race too. And I think that will benefit the Mets as well. Not to mention the extra motivation. So I'm not telling you the Dodgers are going to be an easy out or they're going to get upset. But just sometimes it's hard to flip that switch if you haven't played baseball with a sense of urgency. The advantage the Dodgers have is there's so many veterans on that team.

There are so many guys who have been through this before and know exactly what it takes. And in the case of the Dodgers, similar to the Yankees, but I would say even more now for the Dodgers over the last say five plus years, is that anything less than a World Series is considered a disappointment. I won't call a failure because that's dumb. But anything less than a winning a World Series is disappointing because of the money and the effort and the star power. Obviously the 111 wins don't carry over, but you see what they did in the postseason. You know, going back last year, the year before, well the year before was 2020. But you think about the number of years they've come up short and how people scream and criticize because they've set the bar so high that they're almost a victim of their own success.

All right. Best and brightest in baseball in 2022. Our social media is rocking this morning. Good to hear from so many of you. ALaw Radio on Twitter, Facebook as well, 855-212-4227. Speaking of rocking, Seattle has been rocking because of the Mariners ending their drought. And we had the chance to catch up with a former Seattle professional athlete.

Now, most of the conversation you're going to have to get from our podcast or our YouTube channel, but kind of cool when I asked him as a former goalkeeper in Seattle, as well as around the world in various places, what it takes to build a culture, what it takes to build chemistry. You're going to love his answer. It's after The listening you love is on the free Odyssey app, your trusted local radio stations, coverage of your favorite teams, live news from your hometown and millions of podcasts on demand. Best of all, you can completely customize your listening experience. Follow topics you care about, like leagues and teams, pause or rewind your local sports and news and add shows to your queue to catch up later. There's a lot to listen to.

So get started and download the free Odyssey app today. For hours on CBS Sports Radio, you are listening to the After Hours Podcast. Next home run, he will surpass Alvin Davis for the most by a Mariner rookie. Swing and a drive deep to left field.

This is up into the light towers. Good bye baseball upper deck. He did it. He moves by Alvin Davis with a towering home run, his 28th home run of the season. On the second pitch he sees from Tyler Alexander and Julio Rodriguez just put one into orbit.

He put it into the front row of the upper deck in left field. And now Julio Rodriguez has hit more home runs than any rookie in a single season in the history of the Seattle Mariners. What a year for this kid. Holy smokes, Julio did it.

This is After Hours with Amy Lawrence. That was the exclamation point on a Mariner season that puts him back in the playoffs for the first time since 2001. Obviously one of the major stories coming out of this regular season. One of the best and brightest moments and memories of baseball in 2022.

What are the others? Well we're getting a lot of your responses on both Twitter and Facebook. We've taken a bunch of calls tonight so you can keep those coming because by Friday we go in head first. Buckle up because the wildcard weekend is upon us.

New format for baseball this year. Had a chance to catch up with a former professional athlete in Seattle who played for another uber popular team in that city. The Sounders always draw extremely well. The fans love their Sounders soccer and the program has had a ton of success. And Jesse Bradley is one of their former goalkeepers.

He also played around the world in other countries like Scotland and across in Africa. And so to be able to talk to him about Seattle sports but also what makes a winning culture. It was really cool to get his insight. The entire conversation it's very inspirational. His journey is it's one that's been fraught with disappointment and tragedy and pain. But he's got so much passion for giving back. So all of it will be on our podcast as well as our YouTube channel when we have the opportunity. But I want you to hear this because I asked him what about the culture with the Sounders?

Why do people buy into it? Why is it so successful in Seattle? Seattle's a soccer city. And you see that at all ages.

I have four kids. They're all playing soccer. University of Washington, they're ranked number one in the nation. And I'm good friends with the coach. It's great to see players developed at every level. And then the Sounders have been so strong. The Sounders won the CONCACAF title this year.

And for those of you who don't follow soccer as closely. That's the champions of the MLS, the League in America, and the champions in Mexico. And they come together in a tournament and American teams have never won that. This is the first time they ever won the championship. And so the Sounders are celebrating that this year. But really it's representative of American professional soccer now so much better than it's ever been. The quality of the players just keeps raising. The fans, there's 33,000 fans on average that come to a game for the Sounders. And it's electric.

They're singing. It's an incredible atmosphere. Even if you don't understand the intricacies of the game, when you're in that stadium, you just don't forget it. And the Sounders have been consistent. They've won, again, MLS titles, two MLS titles.

They've won other cups. They have a tradition of excellence. And the city, anytime someone does something with excellence. Like, let's say you don't enjoy the symphony that much. But if you go and you see the dedication and the excellence, you can appreciate that. And people who come to the game see that.

And the constant singing and the movement and the dancing, it's like it's a place you just want to be. And the Sounders have carried that. Faith and Family, we had one before COVID.

And then we had to wait a while for groups to gather. But this year it's back on. And so this next game that's coming up, Freddie Montero is the all-time leading scorer for the Sounders. He's also, in addition to MLS All-Star, won humanitarian awards. And so he and I, long conversation, talk about our life, our journey, our challenges, our faith. And that's part of the day. Faith and Family, you know, I love it that so many pro sports teams really see that for their athletes it's holistic. And a lot of teams have chaplains.

Sometimes you see prayer before a game and when someone gets injured. And all of us, we have intellectual, we have social, relational, we have physical, we also have spiritual. And I think Faith and Family is a celebration that we are spiritual beings. That's an important part of our lives. And I'm so grateful that the Sounders partner with us and we get to encourage people in this part of their lives. Except that it's more recent as a development with pro sports teams that they are paying attention to not just physical health, but mental health, emotional health.

As you point out, spiritual health is so important. Athletes, just like any other human being in any walk of life, they tend to thrive when all of those various parts of us are healthy and working together. It's not just about having a physical body that is talented. It's about having a mind and a heart and your emotions that are also locked in. And you can see how teams are starting to understand that because they're spending millions and millions of dollars to make sure that their athletes are cared for in other ways.

Yes, that's so well said. Cared for is the key, that it's not just someone who performs well on a field, but you're caring about the whole person. You know, I played college in the Ivy League at Dartmouth and I couldn't figure out my own life since I was doing so well. Our team won the Ivy League championship by personal awards. Then I was at a great school and I couldn't figure out what was missing on the inside. And then I took a class introduction to world religions and I never even thought God existed. I come from a family kind of like Baskin Robbins, 31 Flavors and listeners, you know, that was spiritual listeners.

CBS Sports Radio is probably a wide range and we want to respect each other. So for me and my journey, it was something I discovered later in life. And the professor assigned the Bible and I learned about Jesus and I was blown away.

I was like, wow, I've never heard this. And I started a relationship with God. But what happened is from the inside out is that I'm not performance based identity. There's not much pressure on me.

I'm loved. And there's a security there. In similar sports psychology, why do teams bring them in? Because mental health is so important. And when you care for people, you're going to bring out the best in people. And that's true in every work environment. It's true in sports. And when you can provide, when an employer can provide the resources someone wants to develop and grow in different areas of their life, like that person is going to thrive. And when you're healthy on the inside, there's going to be an overflow on the outside.

And that's so valuable. There's so much pressure on kids right now. They should be enjoying sports. But instead, sometimes the parents, I joke that if you, because my kids, you know, they play in soccer teams and sometimes there's parents that are really over the top.

And sometimes I'm tempted to be that way. If you had a, you know, a camera, I call it the parents cam. If you could show the sidelines and what they're yelling at this ref who's 14 years old and like just got a rep license and they're just like cursing them out.

If they had to show that on social media the next day on your page, it would be embarrassing. Like what other position do you get yelled at like that? But sometimes in sports, we just go, we get out of control. And if the parents are out of control, the pressure for the kids at home is intense.

And then suddenly they're not enjoying it as much. And so, again, we're talking about culture in this interview, but changing the culture where it's different. And it isn't the pressure performance-based, but it's about developing people.

It's about relationships. And when it's healthy at a young age, you know, so often the kids then are going to excel. They're going to play the sport longer.

They're not going to get burned out. And really, sports in our culture, sometimes sports dominates and it becomes the number one. And I don't think sports has ever been designed to be the number one in life. And when you elevate it that high, and I know because as a goalkeeper, I put that pressure on myself, you start to lose the joy of the sport. But when it's in its right spot and you've got other things that are above it, then you actually you're at your best because, you know, we saw this with the men's national team, I think, against Japan recently, is that they just, the World Cup's coming, they look stiff. And in sports, if you get too much pressure on you, you white-knuckle it, you're not going to play your best. So having sports in its proper place, caring for the whole individual, that's really going to develop the kind of athletes that are going to be long-term, and then they can pour back into younger athletes, and now you've got a consistency where it's healthy. And we need that in sports.

We really do. Are you inspired and encouraged? We had a whole conversation with Jesse Bradley, who has a website and is also on Twitter, at Jesse J. Bradley, that entire conversation. And we talked Mariners passion, and we also talked about the team USA that's going to be in the World Cup, and his journey is fraught with some tragedy as well that he didn't even hear. So a lot of really good stuff and his new passion in life, so make sure you check that out on our podcast.

But we're going to throw it up on our YouTube channel as well because you'll be captivated by what he has to say, and his message. I have to tell you, though, even as we're wrapping up, I saved a little bit of space here because one of the best and brightest of baseball in 2022 was a loss. Two and two to Harvey Kean. One strike away. Sandy into his windup.

Here's the pitch. Swung that and missed the perfect game. That is the voice of Vin Scully. Long time ago, Sandy Koufax. He was a fixture with the Dodgers, but not just with the Dodgers. Vin Scully called 25 World Series.

He was in the NFL. He was just an iconic voice, a storyteller, a consummate gentleman, an ambassador for baseball, but also he was so beloved because of his kindness and his smile and the way that he could brighten up a room and always took time for people. So I miss Vin Scully and wanted to make sure I mentioned him. We will soon be talking more about the postseason. What were the best and brightest of baseball in 2022? Keep finding us on Twitter and Facebook, and we'll talk to you tonight after our CBS Sports Radio. Boom! We'll see you on the Odyssey app today.